Rock 'N' Roll Ribs Pairs Metal with Barbecue in Coral Springs

For nearly 30 years, drummer Nicko McBrain has toured the world as part of one of the greatest rock bands of all time, Iron Maiden. He's played arenas and festivals, in front of tens of thousands of people in places Bangalore, India and Gothenburg, Sweden, and hundreds of thousands in Brazil. And throughout that time traveling from city to city, McBrain didn't just perform great; he also ate exceptionally well.

Now McBrain -- who lives in South Florida when he's not embarking on world-wide tours with Maiden -- is taking that knowledge of food he's gleaned over the years and partnering up with close friend, guitarist, and restaurateur Rick "Moby" Baum to open Rock 'N' Roll Ribs. A barbecue joint with a musical bent, RnR Ribs will showcase the pair's love for smokey Southern cooking with food like barbecued pork and chicken and clever takes on Maiden songs like "Run to the Hills" wings. Clean Plate Charlie spoke with McBrain and Baum about their plans for the rib shack, their BBQ background, and how it all came together in the first place.

New Times: So Nicko, sounds like you're something of a foodie.Nicko: Oh, without a doubt. I'm a right snob when it comes to food. I know what I like and what I don't like.

So when did you first get into barbecue?

Nicko: I don't know when I became a fan exactly, but touring America

[with Maiden] we came to a lot of barbecue joints, probably because most of them had a nice bar. And then I fell into back garden parties

and barbecuing in general.

Rick Baum rocking out.

How did you two meet?

Nicko: We actually met through Rick's friend Nathan who is a friend of my son Justin. After we met

we got to know one another a bit and beat each other up a couple of times. Then we

started playing music together and we've had a great friendship ever since. Later on, I found out

Rick was a chef extraordinaire.

When did you guys start barbecuing together?

Nick: In a nutshell, Rick came 'round my house

one day and said, 'Nicko, I have these amazing ribs I want you to try.' And he

cooked them up for me and I thought, 'Well, I've always loved spare ribs but these are to die for.' So I

finally squeezed his bullocks a bit to get his recipe.

Rick: He actually did.

[Laughs]

Nicko: Yes, I squeezed it right out. [Laughs] So we started concocting these

ribs together. I'd do some ribs, he'd do some, and we'd go back and

forth. One day I put a sauce together; I basically added some things to

what he already had and he actually complimented me and said, like, [in a thick British accent] 'Blimey, this sauce

is lovely!'

So when did the idea for a restaurant come about?

Nicko: We were down at the pub one night and down a few

beers and I said, 'This is a fucking great idea, let's open a rock 'n'

roll rib

joint together.' That was about five or six years ago. We had a couple

of false

starts looking for the right location and all, but Rick has some

experience in

setting up restaurants over the last 20 years or so, so he knows what

to do. And

a friend of ours works for Cheney Brothers, so we had access to the

right

ingredients. We just had to find the right location and funding. Another

friend of ours Mitch Tanne and I brought the financing, and Rick brings

his expertise and knowledge of

cooking and running a small kitchen. Our kitchen is small, and the

place seats about 70 people. The cooking will be

mayhem I think, but it's going to be quite rock and roll.

How did you guys formulate the menu?

Nicko: We pretty much sat down and concocted all these

different names for dishes with a rock theme. We collaborated on what we're going to sell and

how we're going to cook it, but Rick really spent the majority of time